The final stand of the fourth generation.
The final stand of the fourth generation.
Canterlot is the only place left. Everywhere else in the world had become barren and lifeless. The only thing that had saved Canterlot from this initial devastation was the shield of the now aged Shining Armor, whose mane was gray and beard had grown with the decades he had been on this Earth. Cadence was with him in these last days, hugging onto him looking as youthful as she ever had. Their love and magic was the only thing keeping the last dregs of life on this world from being swept away.
Soon however, even this will not be enough. Overhead in the darkening skies, it was coming. Nopony knew what it was, but its sheer size was enough to cast a shadow over the entire planet. At first they had spotted it from a telescope many moons ago. It looked like a cloaked figure floating far out in space, slowly moving through the expanse with their planet in its cross-heirs. As its presence had grown closer everything had started withering. Plants and animals were growing sick and dying, the weather was growing a mind and power of its own, and water all over the planet began evaporating into the ever darkening sky faster by the day. No magic at anyponies disposal seemed to have any effect on it, and by the time they had managed to seal off Canterlot with as many refugees as they could manage the devastation had already become all encompassing.
Now that cloaked figure was hovering just above the sky itself, silently waiting as its massive hood stared down impassively at the little shielded city of Canterlot before it. It looked almost close enough to touch if it weren't for the fact that it was the same distance away as the moon itself, which looked like a tiny ball next to its indomitable presence that sought to blot out the sun with its billowing cloak.
Princess Twilight stared at two statues before her. Her Alicorn body had filled out decades ago, and now her physique resembled her former mentor now more than ever. Her mane and tail were ethereal now, flowing in a breeze nopony else could feel as she stared at the memorial of the two sisters. They were not immortal, they never were. They had both passed one day just as all do from this mortal coil. Twilight had been given the reigns of the kingdom.
"I'm sorry... I failed you both...."
A figure showed up behind her and took her into a warm hug that Twilight gladly accepted. The figure hugging her was once a pony, but the fiery haired and ageless woman had found her true calling as a human being instead of being an equine. She had two ethereal wings of magical fire that wrapped themselves around her friend that had saved her from herself. They held their embrace for several long moments, Sunset touching her own horn of magical energy against Twilight's own physical one as a sign of affection before taking their last march together.
"You don't have to be here.... you know what is going to happen Sunset..." said the weak voice of the Princess.
"I won't leave your side Twilight, we will face this together..." Sunset said softly in her friends ear.
They both stared up at the sky to the cloaked being that encapsulated their entire field of vision. Even the growing clouds seemed like specks of mist in comparison to the sheer mass of its presence. With a silent agreement they stood up and began walking in unison, human and Alicorn taking their final march as one. The air was filled with the mournful songs of the guard and civilians alike, lamenting the end of days and the losses they had all suffered in the encroaching death that had swept over their lands. Never before had such a sorrowful melody sounded in Equestria like it did here. It was not a battle cry, it was a funeral ballad.
Shining's shield was the only thing keeping them safe, but it just wasn't enough. It was time for the Elements of Harmony to make their one last march against the foe that has descended upon them.
Slowly their old friends began to appear around them. Pinkie, now aged and grey but still bubbly even in the face of death hopped along at Twilight's side. Rarity, whom time had been graceful too walked on her other side with her head held high, keeping her face calm for the crowd that watched their heroes making their procession down the street to the exit of Canterlot. Rainbow Dash swooped down and alighted down at Pinkie's side. Her rainbow mane had streaks of gray in it now and she wasn't quite as toned as she was when she was a younger mare, but that fire in her eyes was just as potent as it had ever been. Applejack hugged her brother and sister tightly before she joined her friends. Applebloom cried deeply into Mac's shoulder as her sister walked along side the others. She didn't know what would happen, but she dreaded the feeling in the pit of her stomach.
At the entrance stood a rather large purple dragon in regal armor with the lord of chaos standing on the other side. Twilight smiled through her tears at Spike, whom had become such a respectable young dragon as he grew up. He was a war hero now, and Discord had earned many esteems as a hero himself as time went on. Fluttershy flew in and gave him a big hug before joining her friends in their march.
Twilight turned around at the sound of galloping hooves to see Starlight Glimmer rushing to join them. She had been to frightened to take this march with them before, but now it seems courage had finally found Twilight's former enemy. The purple alicorn took the mare in an accepting hug before the whole group turned around.
As they approached the shield, it opened just a little bit to let them out. The nine filed out of Canterlot to the desolate wasteland beyond. They had already chosen the place where they would try their last effort. It was a hill in the distance, a hill once lush with grass and flowers that was now just a husk of dirt. They could feel the gaze of the cloaked figure that eclipsed their entire planet as they made their procession to the elevated ground. None said anything in the face of this monolithic entity that saw fit to bring death to their world. Nopony knew why it had come. Nopony could talk to it. Nopony could reason with it. It had just descended on their planet from beyond the sky with no warning at all.
Everypony took their position, standing staring at one another as the Alicorn Twiight and the Human Sunset Shimmer stepped into the center and stared up at the massive hood above them that had started to enter the atmosphere.
"Elements of Harmony..." Twilight intoned as she steeled her nerves against the figure that descended upon them "Please... If there is any chance in beating this thing before us, help us now...."
Her friends and herself started glowing as they reached into the magic granted to them by the tree of harmony. Their manes began to glow like they hadn't in decades as their hooves hovered off the ground in the oh so familiar formation. They all smiled at each other through their tears, hugging each other as they felt the rainbow power coursing through their veins.
Discord flexed his claws, summoning up the turbulent energies of chaos, more than he ever had in his entire life. He began to grow while the elements of harmony gathered their energy. He glared into the sky with pulsating energy emanating from his eyes, more serious now than he had ever felt in his entire existence. He would of simply left this reality under any other circumstance, but now... now he had friends whom needed him. He would fight this entity with every fiber of his being.
Spike doubled his impressive form over and churned up the fire in his core, his mouth barely containing the green flame that was awaiting its release.
"...Help us in our cry!" Twilight screamed out. All at once the strongest rainbow the friends had ever fired shot out of them straight into the sky, shortly accompanied by the coiling chaos and fire of Spike and Discord. Every one of them was firing with every fiber of their being. Every one of them struck out against this force of death, ready to fight to the last breath.
The powerful beam of magic was a beacon of hope to the last remaining survivors of Canterlot as they watched the pillar of colorful light shoot straight into the air into the stratosphere. They watched and hoped as its energies that shook the planet itself that it would be enough to banish this cloaked figure that had descended upon their world.
After a short delay, the beam struck its destination, causing an explosion in space that violently stirred up the winds of the planet as the beam maintained its powerful battery against the massive wraith. It had seemed like they might actually win. There was hope in their faces as they pressed their attack.
And then all at once... the cloaked figure struck back.
The world was enveloped in white as its attack swept across the world. Twilight watched as her friends and herself began to disintegrate in extremely slow motion. She thought back to all the lessons she had learned, to all the friendships she had made, to all the lives she had changed. She had lived a good life. Even if this was how she was going to go down, at least she knew that she had made some small difference in this world. Sunset Shimmer and the others rushed in for their final hug, even as their bodies began falling to pieces, enjoying each others presence on this mortal coil if only for the briefest second longer.
Once the final move was made by the cloaked figure had been made, the world had been made still once again.
The slate had been cleaned.
The fourth generation had passed.
The fifth was now ready to be made.
it would fashion a whole new world, a whole new realm of ponies and magic, just like it has done several times before.
Just like it will do many times again.
Author's Note
Based on this emotional piece called Answers from Final Fantasy. It's an idea I had over how the different generations could exist in the same universe but still be as vastly different as they are.
One day Generation 4 will end, and Generation 5 will take its place.
